Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
“My characters are like forms to me. It’s the randomness of them that I like — the more ridiculous or outlandish they are, the better.”
— Szabolcs BozóStanding before the vivid works created by Szabolcs Bozó, one feels as if they are stepping inside the pages of a colourful children’s book populated by absurd yet adorable characters. Channelling the joyful exuberance of simpler days, the Hungarian artist’s oeuvre comprises bright, bizarre creatures, often manifested on large canvases and murals. The present work is emblematic of Bozó’s iconic style, depicting a falcon-like creature with wings painted in rich shades of royal blue and gold. As the title suggests, the character is a hybrid of a bird, a cat, and a man -- its front leg seems to be that of a human’s, while its hindleg is a brown paw with sharp talons characteristic of birds of prey. It is the ridiculousness and joyousness of Bozó’s creations that makes them all the more lovable and endearing to critics and collectors alike.
A Nostalgic Narrative
While Bozó is hesitant to make an intentional connection to his homeland, perceiving his work as a tribute to childhood and imagination rather than a reflection of culture and history, Hungarian pop culture has had an indirect influence on his aesthetic. In regard to this, Bozó reflects: ‘...my figures are mostly not tied to local pictorial traditions. Of course, there are a character or two that I bring from home. For a previous show, for example, I made a Süsü, the dragon, but the Czech figure Krtek, the Mole is also a recurring character.’ i Born in 1992, the artist grew up in a newly post-communist Hungary — a time when local creatives and productions flourished. Eastern Europe had their own animations and cartoons, and Bozó’s incorporation of beloved characters into his oeuvre is a nod to nostalgic children’s entertainment, which often intersects with the region’s rich folkloric culture.
Still from Hungarian Animated Film, Johnny Corncob, 1973, directed by Marcell Jankovics Painted in a bold, bright palette that looks as if picked straight out of a crayon box, a cast of delightful, animal-like creatures dance merrily across Bozó’s canvases. Their eyes, reminiscent of googly eyes used in arts and crafts, peek playfully at something outside of the frame, brimming with curiosity and mischief. The characters appear to be endearing little troublemakers, all donning cheeky, knowing smiles. Their round, bubbly bodies recall the form of a twisted balloon animal one would likely find at a child’s birthday party, imbuing the works with lively energy and sentimental feeling. Bozó’s art-making process plays into the nostalgic narrative of his works as well — he rolls out his canvases on the floor, filling in the outlined forms with large, loose strokes as if the surface were a giant colouring book ii.
“Funnily, I used to say that instead of Cubism, I represent the Cuteism movement.”
— Szabolcs Bozófaux naïf
Bozó’s understanding of colour is profound, his paintings brimming with varying textures and tones despite the use of single-colour blocks. Opting for a looser hand instead of strict, solid planes of pigment, Bozó’s surfaces are erratic, mottled, and full of surprises. In the current work, traces of fingerprints and even footprints are sprinkled throughout; smudges of colour and stray specks of paint stain the white backgrounds, purposely clumsy yet exuding a juvenile charm.
Detail of the present work Impulse and imperfections are integral to his paintings, mirroring the excited and uninhibited way that children create artwork, focusing on enjoying themselves, instead of fixating on details and errors. His brushstrokes are unpredictable and wide, intentionally messy and instilled with unparalleled enthusiasm.
Unmediated in his expression of creativity, Bozó’s zoomorphic characters are chimeric and fantastical, often sporting extra limbs and wearing unsettlingly human expressions. His creations are refreshing in their honesty and naivety, possessing a boundless imagination that one typically associates with the pure, untainted childhood experience. Bozó’s deliberately cartoonish style is best described as faux naïf — French for ‘falsely naïve’ — which connotes art that eschews traditional painting techniques in favour of simpler, intuitive visual cues. Born out of the desire to seek out authenticity, this movement has been popular since the early 20th century, pioneered by artists such as Henri Rousseau and Paul Klee. More recently, faux naïf has been characterised by juvenile art styles and childhood imagery, noticeable in works by those such as Edgar Plans, Katherine Bernhardt, and Robert Nava.
Left: Lot 38, Katherine Bernhardt, Laundry Day, 2017
Phillips Hong Kong Evening Sale, 22 June 2022
Estimate HKD800,000 - 1,200,000
Right: Lot 40, Robert Nava, Shark Wing Pegasus, 2019
Phillips Hong Kong Evening Sale, 22 June 2022
Estimate HKD1,200,000 - 1,800,000Collector’s Digest
Currently based in London, Szabolcs Bozó’s work has been widely exhibited in numerous cities, such as New York, Miami, Palma de Mallorca, Madrid, Paris, and Shanghai, among many others. His recent solo exhibitions include The Explorer (2021) with Carl Kostyál, London; Kawaii (2021) with Almine Rech, Shanghai; Busójárás (Carnival) (2021) with Almine Rech, Brussels.
The artist’s first solo museum exhibition, Must You Dance , will open at M Woods Beijing, 9 July, closing 9 October 2022. The exhibition will include paintings, works on paper, and site specific installations and sculptures.
i Szabolcs Bozó, quoted in Adam Hencz, ‘A Perfect Antidote to Disquiet Times: The Goofy Creatures of Szabolcs Bozó’, Artland, online
ii ‘SZABOLCS BOZÓ’, CASE STUDYO, online
Provenance
L21 Gallery, Palma
Private Collection, Macau
Acquired from the above by the present owner
37
One Bird, A Cat and A Man
signed, dated and inscribed 'BOZÓ 2020 LONDON Bozó' on the reverse
acrylic and oil stick on canvas
130.5 x 160.5 cm. (51 3/8 x 63 1/4 in.)
Executed in 2020.
Estimate
HK$400,000 - 600,000
€48,700-73,100
$51,300-76,900
Sold for HK$882,000
Charlotte Raybaud
Specialist, Head of Evening Sale
+852 2318 2026
CharlotteRaybaud@phillips.com
20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale
Hong Kong Auction 22 June 2022
1
Julie Curtiss
Funky Boots
Estimate HK$600,000 - 800,000
Sold for HK$1,071,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
2
Jamian Juliano-Villani
Hand's Job
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$819,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
3
Lucy Bull
8:50
Estimate HK$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for HK$11,382,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
4
Scott Kahn
Soundview
Estimate HK$900,000 - 1,400,000
Sold for HK$4,032,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
5
Hernan Bas
Who Told Them We Were Coming?
Estimate HK$4,000,000 - 6,000,000
Sold for HK$3,528,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
6
Shara Hughes
Pleasure House
Estimate HK$3,000,000 - 5,000,000
Sold for HK$6,542,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
7
Loie Hollowell
Linked Lingam in Red and Blue
Estimate HK$1,800,000 - 2,800,000
Sold for HK$3,024,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
8
Anna Weyant
Chest
Estimate HK$500,000 - 700,000
Sold for HK$4,158,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
9
George Condo
Transparent Female Forms
Estimate HK$25,000,000 - 35,000,000
Sold for HK$36,550,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
10
This lot is no longer available.
11
Matthew Wong
Pink Wave
Estimate HK$16,000,000 - 26,000,000
Sold for HK$22,635,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
12
David Hockney
Painted Landscape (Or Red and Blue Landscape)
Estimate HK$16,000,000 - 24,000,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
13
Ed Ruscha
Spied Upon Scene: Window
Estimate HK$3,500,000 - 5,500,000
Sold for HK$3,150,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
14
Huang Yuxing
Pearl Shore
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for HK$3,024,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
15
This lot is no longer available.
16
Nicolas Party
Two Portraits
Estimate HK$6,000,000 - 8,000,000
Sold for HK$6,542,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
17
George Condo
The Strangers
Estimate HK$5,000,000 - 6,500,000
Sold for HK$5,670,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
18
Ernie Barnes
Life After Sundown
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for HK$6,048,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
19
Javier Calleja
1971
Estimate HK$3,500,000 - 5,500,000
Sold for HK$4,032,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
20
Yoshitomo Nara
Untitled
Estimate HK$6,000,000 - 8,000,000
Sold for HK$7,510,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
21
This lot is no longer available.
22
Adrian Ghenie
Pie Fight Study 4
Estimate HK$3,500,000 - 4,500,000
Sold for HK$4,032,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
23
Michaël Borremans
Stars
Estimate HK$2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for HK$2,772,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
24
Li Chen
Angelic Smile
Estimate HK$2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for HK$4,284,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
25
Zhang Xiaogang
Bloodline Series - Big Family
Estimate HK$7,500,000 - 10,000,000
Sold for HK$8,115,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
26
Zhang Enli
Things
Estimate HK$2,200,000 - 4,200,000
Sold for HK$2,520,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
27
This lot is no longer available.
28
Lee Ufan
From Line No. 790372
Estimate HK$9,000,000 - 14,000,000
Sold for HK$11,140,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
29
Pierre Soulages
Peinture 102 x 130 cm, 11 mars 2016
Estimate HK$7,500,000 - 10,000,000
Sold for HK$8,115,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
30
Ouattara Watts
Intercessor
Estimate HK$800,000 - 1,200,000
Sold for HK$1,134,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
31
Sam Francis
Untitled
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
32
KAWS
UNTITLED
Estimate HK$3,500,000 - 4,500,000
Sold for HK$3,276,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
33
Kohei Nawa
PixCell-Deer #21
Estimate HK$2,800,000 - 3,500,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
34
This lot is no longer available.
35
Anna Park
I to I
Estimate HK$300,000 - 500,000
Sold for HK$2,268,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
36
Trey Abdella
Some Things Aren't Worth Waiting For
Estimate HK$600,000 - 900,000
Sold for HK$2,646,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
37
Szabolcs Bozó
One Bird, A Cat and A Man
Estimate HK$400,000 - 600,000
Sold for HK$882,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
38
Katherine Bernhardt
Laundry Day
Estimate HK$800,000 - 1,200,000
Sold for HK$2,142,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
39
Issy Wood
Dog With Pendants (Not as Close)
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 1,800,000
Sold for HK$1,386,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
40
Robert Nava
Shark Wing Pegasus
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 1,800,000
Sold for HK$3,780,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
41
Ayako Rokkaku
Untitled
Estimate HK$2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for HK$8,115,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
42
Allison Zuckerman
Bullseye
Estimate HK$550,000 - 750,000
Sold for HK$1,071,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
43
Serge Attukwei Clottey
Valentine's Day
Estimate HK$250,000 - 450,000
Sold for HK$693,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
44
Genieve Figgis
Pink Ballroom
Estimate HK$1,500,000 - 2,000,000
Sold for HK$2,016,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
45
Emmanuel Taku
Brothers in Red
Estimate HK$300,000 - 500,000
Sold for HK$1,512,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
46
Aboudia
Take Me II
Estimate HK$500,000 - 700,000
Sold for HK$2,520,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
47
José Parlá
Writers' Bench: Grand Concourse & 149th Street, The Bronx
Estimate HK$800,000 - 1,200,000
Sold for HK$1,764,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
48
Edgar Plans
Night Creatures
Estimate HK$1,200,000 - 1,800,000
Sold for HK$3,024,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.
49
Rafa Macarrón
Sin título (Cosmos)
Estimate HK$700,000 - 1,000,000
Sold for HK$1,386,000
Create your first list.
Select an existing list or create a new list to share and manage lots you follow.